ISAC Gift Assistance Programs (GAP) Access

ISAC Gift Assistance Programs Access (or GAP Access) is the portal through which online interactions for the purpose of data inquiries and submissions, eligibility announcements and payment requests for ISAC-administered programs are conducted. Due to the confidential nature of the student-specific data involved, a secure authentication process is required before access can be granted.

Assigning an Administrator

All users, not just those who work in the financial aid office, need a valid GAP Access ID and password (for example, users who need access to the FTP site). The links to the GAP Access User Guides below provide step-by-step instructions for activating accounts for administrators and users of the GAP Access portal. ISAC will rely on an administrator (contact person) at each institution to authorize users. The GAP Access Administrator will ultimately be responsible for monitoring passwords, staff access, and security for a variety of ISAC programs. The initial request for institutional access should be made by the Financial Aid Director or High School Principal.

Ultimately, one entry point, user name and password will be used to gain access to all programs to which a user has been granted access by their school’s administrator. As additional ISAC gift assistance programs are added to the GAP Access portal, the administrator must access the User Maintenance area and update the program access and level for each user.

GAP Access User Guides

User Guides for all GAP Access functionality are below. General questions, user name and password maintenance, and technical information about GAP Access are answered in the Activating and Authentication User Guides.

This link takes you to the GAP Access Login page. Once your account has been activated, enter your user name and password to gain access to administrator and user maintenance functions, as well as any ISAC Gift Assistance Program currently available. Refer to the user guide for each program listed below to learn how to select a program, view screen examples and how to enter and submit data to ISAC.

In an effort to improve the security of ISAC partner-facing websites containing personally identifiable information (PII), an enhanced 2-step authentication security measure is utilized in GAP Access. When accessing GAP Access, users will need to enter their ID and password, then answer one of the three security challenge questions they provided when they initially signed up for GAP Access. This 2-step authentication process is similar to the one used on all ED systems. Refer to the step-by-step instructions link above or in the right menu.

Functionality Available via GAP Access

GAP Access User Verification

GAP Access User Verification is completed through the GAP Access portal. After receiving an e-mail from ISAC that the user verification process is under way, the school’s Primary Administrator is responsible for checking, updating and verifying GAP Access users at the school, then submitting a confirmation of the verification online to ISAC by the due date provided in the e-mail.

MAP Advising Data

The MAP Advising Data component of GAP Access provides a streamlined and standardized means of reporting course completion rates and descriptions of advising and support programs that are available for MAP recipients on college campuses.

State Scholar Program (SSP)

The sixth semester data used to determine State Scholars must be submitted via the GAP Access portal. High schools may choose from two online options when submitting the required sixth semester data. Individual records may be submitted or Excel spreadsheets (following ISAC’s formatting specifications) may be uploaded through the batch process. The Required Sixth Semester Data page contains information about the required data and using GAP Access for submissions.

Illinois National Guard Grant (ING) Program

All ING electronic processing and management of information by colleges takes place through the GAP Access portal, including access to student eligibility data and processing of benefit usage data. Details are available on the ING Grant Electronic Processing page.

Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program

IVG Benefit Usage processing takes place through the GAP Access portal (replacing IVG claim processing that was previously done via the My Zone system). IVG Benefit Usage is similar to ING and MAP claim processing with the same reporting and file extraction capabilities. Specific details regarding the IVG Benefit Usage, including the IVG File Specifications and important reminders and guidelines, are provided on the IVG Benefit Usage page and the IVG Electronic Processing page.

Gift Assistance Programs Budget Entry (MAP, IVG & ING Grant)

Budget data for MAP and the Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) and ING Grant programs is collected via the "School: Budget" area of GAP Access typically beginning in April of each year. Step-by-step instructions for accessing and navigating the GAP Access "School: Budget" screens are provided on the Gift Assistance Budget Instructions page, and may also be viewed in a separate browser window via a link in the top right corner of the "School: Budget" screens. After logging in to GAP Access, only those staff members who have been granted authority to do so will be able to access the "Budget" option from within the "School" area.

FAFSA Completion Initiative

The FAFSA Completion Initiative provides the means for high schools across the state to identify which of their students have completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) in a given academic year. Data available includes names of students; aggregate data for the entire student body; how many students are eligible for MAP and the federal Pell Grant Program; expected family contribution (EFC) ranges and a listing of the first-choice colleges to which students have sent their FAFSA results.